Armor, Cybernetics, Equipment and Weapons Questions

1. Since the changes in some of the books the MDC by Location on some types of armor have changed. Is there a formula for figuring out the MDC by Location on the body armor in the older books?

Answer: If no MDC is listed by location, allocate 15% for each leg, 10% for each arm, 5% for the head, and the rest to the main body. The amount listed in the book for the main body will remain the same for the main body. For example a set of armour with 40 MDC for the main body (as listed in the main book), will have the following assigned - 9 MDC for each arm, 5 for the head, and 15 for the arm.

2. Why don't armies with Glitter-Boy technology use it on all of their vehicles and robots? I have yet to see a Glitter Tank.

Answer: The technology is very expensive, and extra heavy. In the Chaos Earth Series appearing in the Rifter, Kevin Siembieda mentions that the SAMAS units operate by NEMA are also constructed using Glitter Boy Armour, Likewise the New German Republic has experimented with using the technology with some of their robot designes (the Glitterwing version of their Dragon Wing robot), and by Quebec in North America with its GB-96 Glitter Boy transport craft.

4. All the Naruni forcefields have an equivalent suitable for cyborgs and Giant Robots with twice the MDC. I assume this is because of the size and bulk of the harnesses. Can a Giant character (e.g. Nimro, Cyclops, Rahu-man) utilize one of these "giant-sized" force fields?

Answer: They cannot. The High capacity force fields, also require a connection to a larger power source than the e-clip powered personal models. With the Cyborg and Robot version they tap into the Borgs/Bots nuclear power supply.

5. How long can a suit of CS Environmental body armor (CA1, CA2, the old style...it doesn't matter) run for if it is under continuous use? ie: HUD's turned on, internal heating/cooling measures being used, plus any other fiddly gadgets on them that require power from somewhere.

Answer: Electronics from Body armour can run for 36 hours continuously, of course, if used judiciously, such systems can go months without requiring recharging (powering up in combat, unpowered otherwise).

6. How long does it take to don the various types of ancient armour?

Answer: It all depends on how complex the armour is, from a single attack or two for jerkin and smock style armour (Leather jerkins, chainmail vests, etc), up to 30 or more minutes for full jousting plate.

7. In the Japan World Book, there is a reference to a palm weapon link. Is this supposed to be a palm generated weapon, or is a bionic device similar to what mechanoid robots use to power their weapons?

Answer: In Japan there are Palm Energy Blasters, but the weapon link was omitted. If you do use it, it would be around 30,000 credits, and allow modified/borg weapons to be linked to the nuclear power supply. Similar to the Skelebots CV-212 laser rifle.

8. If somebody has amplified hearing can they get the +6 bonus while wearing power armor or while piloting a robot vehicle?

Answer: No they do not. being inside Power armour or bots reduces hearing, and sensory abilities.

9. I was wondering what would happen if a full conversion borg was hit with a phase gun OR a phase spell. Being that their bodies are made of what I would assume to be similar material to MDC armor, wouldn't that mean that a Borg should be VERY SCARED of phase guns being that the only living body parts that they have are maybe a tongue and a brain? This would mean that a Borg with X hundred MDC could be taken out by the cheapest phase weapon in a shot or two.

Answer: Phase weaponry would bypass a Borgs normal armor. Unless the 'borg was protected by a force field, the phase beamer would harm his natural body parts. Since the few body parts are small, the phase beam would do half damage (the GM might require a called shot to hit the area where the flesh components are); the 'borg's hit points for these purposes would be either normal, or, for full conversions, P.E. plus 1D4 per level of experience.

10. Also, how long does it take to acquire a cybernetic implant (say, an arm or eye)? And after the surgery, how long does it take for the implant to function properly because of the drugs and such (my G.M. says approx. 3 days, but that seems a little too long, in my opinion)?

Answer: There section on this in the Rifts GM Guide on pages 270-271. The basics of the system is for every $25,000 credits worth of work done the patient will suffer one point of hit point damage. The new cybernetic will not come online until the lost hit points are healed. I suggest you see the book for more detail on this and other possible side affects. A lot depends on the implant involved, but 1-2 days of recovery for a minor procedure is reasonable. Surgery could take as little as 1 hour, to 10 or more hours depending on the amount and type of Cybernetics/Bionics installed.

11. Is the juicer conversion considered cybernetic (for magic purposes)?

Answer: Yes, Juicer Conversion is considered cybernetic for magic purposes. It counts as 2 implants (the Bio Comp and internal IRMSS) and as such halves all magic ability. The same also applies to psionic ability except for those Juicer systems designed to augment psionic ability.

12. Since all objects contain chi, can a martial artist who was forced to become a cyborg still use chi abilities and martial arts techniques?

Answer: No, when they lost there body they lost the harmony gained from practice to use chi. The GM might let them get it back but they would have to start from scratch.

13. You have stated before in the Fan Faq that borgs only have 43% - 45% of their tactile sense. In game terms what exactly does this mean i.e.; What negatives or bonuses to do what things (Pick locks, parrying piloting, pull punch ...etc).

Answer: Generally -5 to -15% to appropriate skills such as pick locks. See the Cybernetics section of the Rifts Main Book. It also means that fragile objects may be broken as too much pressure may be applied to the object, or small features, like brail text may not be felt.

14. I was wondering if thermo-imagers or any other optics could see through walls, doors, window blinds, etc.?

Answer: No, a thermal imager works on heat and the most it can tell you about a wall is where the studs are or the location of any hotspots. As for windows they are not any more clearer for thermo-imagers then walls. All other systems work on the light amplification so will not see through anything either.

15. In rifts I was wondering if there is a tent that can be bought or if there is any camping equipment that can be bought?

Answer: Prices of camping and wilderness equipment can be found in Warlords of Russia.

16. I was looking through Juicer Uprising and I want to create a Phaeton Juicer, when I got to the point of equipment I look it over the equipment section and saw that they receive a PAS helmet. I flipped over to the Delphi Juicer and saw that the Phaeton Juicer and the Delphi Juicer have the exact same equipment list. So what I need to know is what is the actual equipment list for the Phaeton Juicer?

Answer: Remove the PAS Helmet. Other equipment remains the same. Giving them a light fast vehicle is also appropriate.

17. I saw in one of the Rifters a portable E-clip recharger. What are the states and what is the Black Market price?

Answer: Portable e-clip rechargers would probably fetch around the 50,000 cr mark and require to be plugged into a nuclear power plant (cost extra), however operators can make e-clip rechargers providing they have access to a nuclear power plant (from a power armor, but, vehicle, or independent).

18. In a campaign that we were just playing, a character wanted to blow up a nuclear battery. I was wondering exactly how much MD the resulting explosion would cause to the surrounding area. Also, how much MD does the casing of the nuclear battery have?

Answer: There would be no explosion, however radioactive material will be spread around the place, making it lethal to unprotected plants and animals. The description of the rail guns in the Rifts Main Book covered breached Nuclear Batteries/power packs.

19. I was looking at the South America book. According to the information on the "Black Galleon" Gunboat (a water vehicle with 900 MDC, 4 types of missile/torpedo launchers, and a laser cannon) going for only 400,000 credits!!! I hope this is merely a misprint, I doubt the gasoline engine would make it that cheap.

Answer: Yes, that is the correct black market price for the boat.

20. I've been wondering if they have contact lenses in Rifts?

Answer: Advanced cities should have facilities for making contact lenses. The cost would vary though by supply for example in a major city that could make them about 20 credits for a weeks worth. In the wilderness they would be much higher and most likely not even available.

21. Is a Battle Ax really one handed? Does it really do 3D6 damage?

Answer: Yes, the stats for the Battle Axe are correct.

22. If phase weapons are stopped by force fields, and goes through light body armor: Does phase weapons get stopped by walls? if so: how thick must the wall be? If not: Does it hinder a phase beam: how much does it?

23. Can someone with cybernetically amplified hearing turn in off. I think it would really hurt if you had it turned on when a Boom Gun went off. If you can turn it off and you just go deaf from sound of it firing, can you turn it back on and hear normally? How does that work?

Answer: Cybernetics either come (or can be equipped) with an off switch. If someone is normally deaf, a cybernetic ear may not be enough to allow them to hear again.

24. With the Deathbringer sword in Federation of Magic, I have a query. It says that it has the power of invulnerability, from all attacks (excluding magic/psychic). Does this mean that upon activation, the character is impervious (totally- i.e. no damage) from all other attacks?

Answer: Yes, but remember just the user not anything he is wearing like armor.

25. A lot of the CS weapons were listed in the main book as having a standard ROF, but in War Campaign they are single shot only. Which listing is right?

Answer: The one in CS War Campaign. Standard ROF for energy weapons is single shot, with burst capabilities only being possible if mentioned in the weapon description and individual statistics.

26. Are there any books which show the stats/prices for scopes/sights?

Answer: They can be found in Traix and the NGR (Cat. No. 810) on page 151 and in the Rifts GM Guide on pages 189-190.

27. Is it possible to use the armourer skill or telemechanics power to remove the set weapon sight from a preset weapon (i.e- JA-12) and then adapt/modify (attach) this to another weapon.

Answer: Yes, it can be done with a -20% to -30% skill modifier depending on how difficult the GM fells the task is. Sights which are designed to be portable can be removed, and fitted to other weapons with no penalty, though no bonuses would be provided (in fact a penalty should apply) until the sight has been calibrated to the weapon it has been fitted to.

28. Can a rune weapon bond with a cyborg (full or partial) or other mechanical being?

Answer: Yes, the bonding process is not affected by cybernetics.

29. What is the damage caused by the rune staff of the Rune warrior from South America 2.

Answer: By focusing P.P.E. 1D6 M.D. of damage can be dealt for every point of P.P.E. spent. The blasts are +3 to Strike and have a range of 100 feet per level. If used as club it would do 2D6 S.D.C. plus any S.D.C. damage bonus gained from the Physical Strength stat.

30. I was curious on how loud energy weapons are?

Answer: This is discussed in Rifts Japan on pages 115-116 and the Rifts GM Guide on page 111. With laser weapons they make no noise at all. For other energy weapons go by the rules in the GM Guide with other energy weapons make a slight noise.

31. In "Warlords of Russia" why do both Short and long G-Clips cost the same? 4,500 credits.

Answer: As Soul Drinkers are Greater Rune weapons, there are very few beings that can resist their power to some degree. Among such entities are: Great Old Ones -- are immune to soul drinking. Alien Intelligence's (like the Lord of the Deep and Apsu of the Abyss), Deities that can be considered as Supreme Beings of their pantheons, and Splugorth -- can easily resist souldrinking because of their power level, but can be affected by continuous attacks. Supernatural Intelligence's (such as Modeus, Mictla, Mephisto), major Deities, and Death (of the Four Horsemen) -- can resist soul drinking with some effort but can be affected by repeated attacks. Vampire Intelligence's, Apocalypse Demons (excluding Death), minor Deities, and ancient dragons -- subject to soul drinking but will have a number of pluses to save (the bonus will vary the power level of the entity). Creatures with power levels below those mentioned already have no resistance to speak of vs. soul drinking. For entities and creatures that are n ot already mentioned, just extrapolate from the existing beings listed above.

33. What is the size of each general class of missile (mini, SRM, MRM, LRM) in Rifts? Length, width (not including the fins), and weight?

Answer: A mini missile is generally about the size of a can of coke. Short Range missiles are a bit longer, and are akin to light shoulder mounted missile launchers today (stinger etc) and anti tank missiles/rockets. Medium Range missiles are larger missiles found on aircraft and can be several feet long. Long range missiles are those found in heavy rocket launchers, and can be 6-12 foot long or more (MLRS, Scuds, etc fall in this category). As for weight a mini missile will only weigh a few pounds while a long range missile will weigh several hundred pounds.

34. Rifts Australia: How much PPE does it take to recharge the Mok Karka? (Pg. 142). Also how much damage does it do?

Answer: 100 P.P.E. to recharge and 2D6+3 M.D for damage.

35. When using a wooden weapon, such as a baseball bat, which does double normal damage, is the character's P.S. damage bonus also doubled?

Answer: The damage bonus is added but not doubled.

36. The Wormwood dimension book is missing serious info; how much PPE is need to reload the Techno Wizard pistols and rifles of Wormwood? What kind of rounds and gunpowder are needed to do it manually?

Answer: No, rounds or gunpowder are required for the pistols and rifles. The weapons are actually TK powered, and as such require Telekinesis to be cast on them to recharge them. Use the rules in the Rifts Main Book for recharging Techno-Wizard weapons.

37. In the sourcebook number 4: Coalition Navy , on page 46 you talk about limpet mines, what I would like to know is the last damage for plastique-type. Because it is writen 1D4 x 100? MD or SDC.

Answer: That is 1D4x100 M.D.

38. How long does it take to recharge a standard e-clip?

Answer: The full time for e-clip recharging and prices can be found in the Rifts GM Guide on page 111. The time for a standard e-clip is 1D6+10 minutes.

39. Naruni Enterprises weaponry has been found in the hands of the Cibolan Defense forces. It differs in design that standard Naruni Equipment. Why is this so?

Answer: Different artists drew the weapons, and each artist has their own view on the weapons.

40. Can arrows be modified or magicked? Can they be Dwarven or Kobold made, and if so, under what category would they fall? Can a bow be magicked or modified?

Answer: Arrows can be modified or be magical, though they are rare. They can also be Kobold or Dwarven made, and are considered blade weapons (like spears).

41. Do sonic weapons affect invulnerable characters?

Answer: Sonic attacks do not affect a invulnerable character.

42. What is the damage on the TW Sonic Rifle? In Federation of Magic page 115 it says as per shockwave spell, but this spell varies with damage according to the level of spell caster. Is there a set level or is it the level of the creator of the weapon?

Answer: Typically level 3. (3D4 MD)

43. Is it assumed that the purchase price of weapons includes the appropriate e-clips? If so, are these e-clips assumed to be charged or empty or either?

Answer: Weapons will usually come with ONE fully charged E-Clip thrown in (However, this will depend on where and from who the weapon is purchased).

44. What are the stats for the death kiss rune sword from the 1st edition Palladium Fantasy main book?

Answer: The stats are from the Tomb of Gersidi Adventure. Deathkiss has been updated to 2nd edition Palladium Fantasy and the new statistics can be found in the Library of Bletherad.

45. What happens if you shoot an e-clip? does it explode or what?

Answer: It is up to the GM. They may explode if hit, or simply be discharged. But targeting a E-clip is very difficult in combat.

46. Also, if there are borgs on Rifts Earth why does anybody worry about them? I mean all you should have to do is mechanical engineer a white noise generator (which puts out an EMP on a set frequency) and make it go on all frequencies. And for the extra kick, make it run off an e-clip for increased range. Do borgs (with all the technology the American Empire came up with in the Golden Age) have any kind of shielding against it?

Answer: Military hardware is shielded against EM spectrum interference.

47. What are the stats for the Large Gravity Rail Gun in phase world? It isn't there.

Answer: Large Ship mounted G-Cannons can be found on p93 and p99 of the Phase World Sourcebook.

48. Do techno wizard weapons benefit from ley lines and nexuses? Would they receive range and damage bonuses for being charged near or activated near them, and would that include the Federation of Magic items?

Answer: Yes, they do benefit from proximity to Ley Lines, being subjected to extra power while along them and yes it also applies to Federation of Magic items.

49. In Revised Heroes Unlimited, how much does shotgun ammo cost?

Answer: Shotgun ammunition fetches around $40 per box of 100 rounds (buckshot) Solid Slugs are $50 per box of 100.

50. If a vibo-blade can be turned on or off then wouldn't it take an melee action to turn it on during combat?

Answer: They are generally provided with thumb triggers/studs or grip triggers, allowing just gripping the weapon to turn it on. This means it can be turned on in the same action as drawing it. If its already drawn but turned off it will require an action to turn it back on.Unless the vibro-blade has been modified most of them are designed with safety triggers, so when released the immediately power off.

51. What catagory does a sling fall into (projectile or thrown), and does it get the P.P. bonus to strike?

Answer: A Sling falls under a missile weapon and does not get a P.P. based strike bonus.

52. How long can a Vibro-blade run for if it is they left running?

Answer: Vibro weapons, last for 1 hour before requiring a new e-clip or recharging. Of course, if used judiciously, such systems can go months without requiring recharging (powering up in combat, unpowered otherwise).

53. Rifts Japan - AT-230 Particle Beam Rifle semiautomatic? Under rate of fire for the A-T230 in Rifts Japan, It says that this weapon has a Standard; semi-automatic firing rate.

Answer: That has been changed in the Rifts GM Guide (page 140) the rate of fire is now only standard.

54. If a character is the victim of a Soul Drink from a Rune Weapon can they be brought back to life via magic like the Resurection tatoo or similar spell?

Answer: They cannot be resurrected because their life essence has been drunk by the soul drinker. Once a soul has been absorbed by a Soul Drinker its gone for good.

Answer: It is up to the individual GM, but doing MD damage and providing M.D. protection in Rifts is reasonable.

56. Can a character be bound to 2 rune weapons?

Answer: Yes, a character can be bound to more then one rune weapon.

57. Do blasts from Phase-Beamers and other Phase-tech weapons pass straight through magic armor?

Answer: They are stopped by all magical barriers including magically enchanted armor.

58. With the proper skills( Weapon Engineer and Electrical Engineer) can you Modify the ROF of guns?

Answer: It is possible to modify pistols and rifles to have a higher rate of fire but this is a all or nothing. For example a rifle can be made to fire full auto but that would then be its only method of firing. Of course that is the simple method for variable options (aim, burst) a selector would have to be installed and that would require major reworking to the inner mechanics of the firearm. The first shouldn't be to hard (-5% at most to skill) while the later would be much harder (-20% to -40%) and require a machine shop. As for energy weapons there rate of fire cannot be modified.

59. How much does Railgun ammunition cost?

Answer: 1,000-2,000 credits per belt.

60. About the out-of-phase fields in phase world do they get affected by rune weapons because they are magic and physical so would it be half damage.

Answer: They are affected, since Rune Swords are magic items, and magical attacks bypass the OP field so they will do full damage.

61. I would like to know if a character with a magic or rune weapon hits a ghost or specter does the creature take any damage?

Answer: Magic weapons can do damage to Specters or Ghosts/Entities.

62. In the main Rifts book - what is the ROF for the TW TK machine gun? How many Burst can it fire in 1 action?

Answer: It can only fire a short burst in one melee action.

63. For HU 2nd edition, I couldn't find the statistics for hollow point, full metal jacket, dumb dumb and Teflon coated rounds as well as other special modification to bullets.

Answer: They can be found in the HU GM Guide, Compendium of Modern Weapons, and some can be found in Aliens Unlimited Revised.

64. What powers a Phase weapon (will a standard E-clip do for a Phase sword?).

Answer: Phase weapons can be powered by E-clips.

65. Can a Psychic or Men of magic O.C.C recharge & use a Xiticix TK-rifle just like any other Techno wizard item, or is the weapon's insectoid origin make it so only the Xiticix can use it?

Answer: These weapon can be recharged like normal TW weapons.

66. Can Rune Weapons get enchanted by an alchemist to be super sharp, invisible, etc.?

Answer: No, as the magic of Rune weapons is beyond alchemist and they cannot modify them.

67. On p. 151 of Ninjas & Superspies, what caliber is the Harrington and Richardson Defender revolver?

Answer: .38 caliber ammunition.

68. I have a question, what is the blast radius of a depth charge. the damage is listed in Mindwerks, but not the blast radius or the added effect under water.

69. In the Atlantis source book on page 137 the keep special energy pump pistol does 5d6 mega damage .... but in the main book the ng-101 and the tx-500 which are both rail guns do only 6d6?

Answer: The weapon is a short range ion blaster/energy weapon which has much greater damage potential than kinetic rounds.

70. Exactly how much sound do rail guns make? I've heard that they make a loud whining noise (60+ decibels), and that they start out with a loud noise, but eventually quite down (the noise gets to a certain point, then gets to a frequency humans can't hear).

Answer: They are extremely loud, about 85 decibels and sound like a machine gun with a high pitched whine.

71. In the HU and the compendium of weapons it lists the 40mm grenade launcher as doing 1D6x100 to 40ft. Is this a mistake and should be 1D6x10? I thought I once saw this in the FAQ as being that 1D6x100 was right but could not find it this time.

Answer: The damage has been revised, and a 40mm grenade launcher now does 2D4x10 S.D.C. damage.

72. The C-12 has three damage settings and is able to fire a single shot or a burst of five. Now the question- is the burst of five, five simultaneous shots for 20d6 mdc, 10d6 sdc, or 30d6 sdc (single shot x5) or does it come under a short burst, single shot x2 damage as per the rifle w.p. burst rule?

Answer: It is considered a short burst (damage x 2)

73. This is something I have been wondering about in regards to the upcoming civil war in Quebec. Is it possible to mount a micro-fusion grenade launcher (a al C-14) onto the bottom of the CV-212, thereby giving a CS grunt anti-personnel capability as well as the power to overcome the laser resistant armour? For that matter, can the launcher be taken off and mounted on anything, or used alone (like the 40mm launcher the Americans use)?

Answer: The grenade launcher is a integral part of the C-14 etc, and cannot be removed except perhaps by a trained armorer. A grenade launcher could be mounted on a CV-212 but it would likely be a non standard weapon then.

74. Who can get Bionics? One of my players (A Special Forces trooper from Mercenaries) wants a Bionic Limb. Can he get it? Will he be a borg?

Answer: A single limb will not warrant conversion to the Borg O.C.C., so it is possible. Rifts Sourcebook One gives details on switching to the Borg O.C.C. when one receives extensive bionic augmentation. There are also more notes in the Rifts GM Guide on pages 268-271 plus a full index of bionics.

75. Do cybernetic implants and limbs have any sort of automatic repair abilities that allow them to heal? or do cybernetic characters have to go to a cyber doc when they are damaged. If Cybernetics do have some type of self repair abilities, at what rate do they repair?

Answer: They do not have any auto repair system unless otherwise stated. For most repairs a operator is required, but for critical repairs, or interface problems a Cyberdoc is required for repairs.

76. Can a Rifts character wear a p field(phase field) and a force field at the same time?

Answer: No, they cannot as the fields would interfere with each other.

77. What would the damage be on a .454 Casull and its range?

Answer: 6D6 S.D.C. damage. Range 150 feet or so.

78. In Macross II RPG, Nuclear Missiles as listed on page 39 do only 2 to 4 times the damage of an armour piercing short range missile, and have a blast radius of 40-50 feet. Was this intentional or a typo? I have a difficult time believing that a heavy fragmentation missile will do more damage than a medium nuclear explosion (of half the blast radius).

79. I am playing a Heroes Unlimited campaign and I am trying to find some ammunition stats for sabot slugs for a 12 gauge shot-gun. Can you tell me how much they cost, how many come in a box and how much damage that they do?

Answer: They do 6D6 S.D.C., a range of 150 feet. They come 5 per box or 250 a case. The cost for the ones I looked up are $10.20 a box and $510.00 a case. The prices are for Winchester as of 2002.

80. What are the limits of the damage a rune weapon inflicts on someone of the opposite alignment? Could a good person pick up an evil rune knife if he puts on heavy gloves or wraps it in a cloth? What are the effects of carrying it around, say, in a backpack?

Answer: 2D4 if incompatible, 3D6 if incompatible and a creature of magic. Using heavy gloves will not reduce this damage, but using tools like pliers/grips to hold it is OK. likewise carrying the item in a pack is reasonable, but any for of direct handling is not.

81. Are the following examples energy weapons; Plasma, Ion, Particle beam, and High Explosive? Also is the blast from a TX-5 or TX-16 count as energy or physical?

Answer: Plasma, Ion and Particle beams are energy weapons, high explosives are not, and this includes the triax pump weapons.

82. Are both the R-140 and J140 (from systems failure) Organitechnology? They look it but don't have a life span listed.

Answer: They are not organitech.

83. In the PFRPG: Western Empires book it has rules for magic weapons made by alchemists that states that any weapon can have up to three powers. It seems to me that it has already been established that in the FAQ that a rune weapon does M.D. in Rifts. What I want to know is if the armor piercing power transfers over with the same abilities in as it has in Palladium Fantasy. It seems to me that being able to cut through robots, powered armor, borgs, and body armor with equal abandon and not having to worry about going through the M.D.C. seems unbalancing. If one application of the power has limitations then does two or three? My players keep on trying to use this and I've been putting them off until I can get a response.

Answer: It has no effect where M.D.C. is involved.

84. I have a question about the Physical Transferal power for magic weapons, mentioned in Western Empire. The weapon adds the damage it does to your opponent to your SDC and hit points, boosting them, for limited amount of time. When the weapons does damage, does it add all the damage it does as SDC, or does it actually transfer hit points and SDC separately (i.e., the weapon does 10 damage to a person with 5 SDC; does it give the weapon's wielder an extra 10 SDC, or an extra 5 SDC and 5 hit points)?

Answer: It transfers them separately.

85. Can a phase sword go through armor like the blast from a phase beamer. Example: Can a thug armed only with a phase sword damage an attacker in M.D.C. (say a glitter boy) by striking him and bypassing the armor and doing damage directly to the pilot or does the phase sword work differently?

86. I was wondering why the Quebec's didn't add the sound filtration system into their body armor, like the Republic of Japan. I would imagine being part of a "reloader squad" would be very challenging. Specially when assigned to assist more then one GB. They would be operating greatly impaired if not deaf after a long day on the front lines. So for the stupid hypothetical side of it, If a GB fired for one whole melee at say 5 attacks. The reloader(s) next to the unit could be deafened up to a max of 20 minutes. This of course is a worst case but on the other hand this is only for one GB and one melees worth of actions.

Answer: The reloaders are secondary line units, putting them next to firing GB's in the front line will expose them to fire. Normally the Glitter Boys will pull back to the mobile reloader teams for rearming, so they will not be affected by Sonic Booms.

87. In Rifts 10: Juicer Uprisings, on page 69, there is a suit of armor designed for juicers. The Vibro-Spike Armor is powered by an e-clip which can maintain the field for up to 12 continuous hours. However, an e-clip can only sustain a single vibro-knife or set of vibro-blades for one hour. This seems extremely out of proportion. Is this an error or is there some reason for the discrepancy?

Answer: The armor is powered by an e-clip which has a lot more capacity than the small power cell used in Vibro weapons (where would you lodge a normal e-clip in a vibro knife?).

88. In federation of magic the dragonfire flamethrower when it hits does it stick like napalm and burn for a while?

Answer: No, it uses a steady flame generated by magic to do its damage not a burning gel like napalm.

89. Rifts Mercenaries pg.125 describes Naruni force fields. However, it is unclear as to whether changing the e-clip restores a damaged force field back to full. Or does it merely mean that the force field keeps operating at the level it had been damaged. Example; My force field starts with 170 MDC, and has sustained 123 MDC damage. I quickly change e-clips in my force field. Is the total remaining in my force field 43 or 170?

Answer: Having to deactivate the forcefield, change the e-clip and power it up will not restore it to full M.D.C. The stresses placed on the generator will still need time to dissipate.

90. The Wilks 237 and the Remi 137 has a double blast setting. Is this setting a burst shot or an aimed shot?

Answer: It is a 2 shot burst.

91. A vibro-blade does damage because it has an energy field around it. So does this make it harmless against an Impervious to Energy spell?

Answer: It does not as the it's the wrong type of energy.

92. South America 2 had TW weapons that 'anyone could use', even non-mages, because of their PPE Cells. Now we have Stormspire apparently duplicating this technology/magic. Does this mean that the PPE Clip-using weapons don't require a magic-using operator, or are they different from SA2's version?

Answer: They are different from the South American versions.

93. On page 184 of Warlords, the G-295R Steamer Pulse Laser Rifle's rate of fire is listed as "Each blast counts as one melee attack." Does it have a pulse capability for greater damage?

Answer: It is a single shot weapon so has no pulse or burst ability at all.

94. I also have a question about soul drinking weapons if a bonded person gets stabbed by their own sword should they immune to the soul drinking or did we do the right thing by rolling a save.

Answer: They would have to roll to save, after all a soul is a soul.

95. I had a question about the Wilks 567 "Long Gun" on p. 207 of New West. Is it firing a single shot with variable damage settings or are they all multi-shot pulses?

Answer: The first selection is a single shot but the rest are pulses.

96. What is the standard damage for a greater artifact in the Nightbane RPG as notated in Nightbane World Book 2:Nightlands. There is no mention of what damage is if no powers are chosen that alter damage.

Answer: As per the weapon it is made to look like.

97. I know a Railgun is considered to be a heavy energy weapon and that you would use the wp of that for any bonuses but shouldn't the weapons systems bonus be included for any that are used by powered armor and robots that use railguns as rifles?

Answer: Only if they are in a turret (remotely controlled), then the weapons systems skill is used instead. Only when the gun is used as a gun (in rifle/pistol format or tripod mounted would the W.P. bonuses be used.

98. In Aliens Unlimited you give some rules on the Riathanor suit but not like how much SDC/MDC, PPE, or what bonus to abilities it has if the wearer is higher in attributes. Because I think the info listed is a combination of both the suit and alien owner.

Answer: For more detailed info on the Riathanor suit I suggest you check out Heroes Unlimited Galaxy Guide as has more detailed info on them.

99. What is the default damage that a Millennium Tree weapon will inflict on a supernatural monster? I've been told that unless stated otherwise, they will inflict their damage in mega-damage x10 to any supernatural being regardless of alignment.

Answer: The default damage for each weapon is given in its description against all foes. Certain type of creatures are vulnerable to the Millennium Tree and will take additional damage. This additional damage is generally mentioned in their description.

100. Do variable frequency laser weapons work against the laser resistant coating on Southern Cross and REF mecha?

Answer: A VF Laser would have to be specially made to defeat the coating since they use a different set of frequencies than in rifts (a standard VF rifle would have about 12-20 different frequencies programmed in and switches between these for maximum effect).

102. Is it possible to shape/carve Millennium Wood into bullets/rounds for slug throwers (automatic weapons, rail guns, etc.)? If so, what would the damage to supernatural & vampires be and how much would they cost?

Answer: It may be possible, and would be treated like normal wooden rounds, or perhaps x2 damage. They cannot be fired from rail guns without being fitted with a ferrous core.

103. Do you have to bring magical enchanted armor to an Alchemist to get it repaired? Its not like normal armor so it seems that a normal blacksmith would not be able to fix it especially if it has extra S.D.C. added to it.

Answer: While a patch job can be done by a blacksmith (riveting a patch over a rent, beating out a dent etc) major repairs will still have to be conducted by a Alchemist in conjunction with a blacksmith.

104. On page 110 of Rifts Atlantis, under the heading Spike-Elbow, it says it gets a +1 bonus to parry. Now, using my common sense, I figure it gets +1 to parry when you parry with the elbow spike, not +1 when you parry with anything. I would like to know if I am right.

Answer: That is correct.

105. About Cyclops lightning javelins. When you throw them they turn to lightning and can't be retrieved, does the same happen to the javelins when they are used in HtH combat?

Answer: If their magic is activated yes. if not activated they will do only normal spear damage.

106. About intangibility do lasers, plasma and ion attacks counts as electricity attacks?

Answer: Ion does, the others no.

107. Does the blades created from the conjurer from federation of magic hurt supernatural creatures like werebeast and/or vampires?

Answer: Yes, the blades will hurt supernatural creatures.

108. If a Techno-Wizard wanted to use a PPE battery for a device with multiple powers, would he/she need to use one or more PPE batteries?

Answer: One battery should be enough if it contains sufficient PPE.

109. Can you give me a hand here, the sound effect magic item ability listed in Western Empire doesn't have a price listed. Can you give me a price for it?

Answer: Its 500 gold per sound effect, with multiple sound effects permissible on a single weapon. (i.e.,. it makes a splat when hitting a dwarf and a gong ringing when it hits an orc and a clown horn when it hits something inanimate). For 750 per effect, rather than 500 gold per effect, you can have the sound be a word or brief phrase, such as "Vengeance is mine!" or "That had to hurt!"

110. In warlords of Russia you can buy a cybernetic power cable to replace a e-clip and myself and some fellow players have wondered if this is possible to put on to a anti tank laser rifle from South America 2 as it would make the player have more destructive capability than most robots.

Answer: It is not possible, the power drain would be too great.

111. As the Naruni Plasma weapons fire 'Large' cartridges and are fired by 'mechanical' impact primer, is it possible to use standard SDC/mdc 12 gauge rounds in a pinch?

Answer: They are not designed for 12 gauge ammo and will not take it without extensive weapons modifications.

112. In HU2 the maximum strength for Bionics is 24. The maximum strength for a Human being is 40. Why is the limit on bionics barely half of the normal human maximum. Shouldn't it be far superior?

Answer: The interface between man and machine is the weak point.

113. In World Book 14, page 47 under the paragraph relating to "The Law in Silvereno", reference is made to the "CFT 'Double-Barrel'". I do not see this weapons statistics listed under the "CFT Experimental Weapons" Section on page 212. Can you provide me with the statistics of this weapon.

Answer:CFT Double BarrelThis is based of the old double-barrel shotguns seen in most old westerns. It has a trigger for each barrel. One or both rounds can be fired at a time.Weight: 4 lbs (1.8 kg)Mega-Damage: 4D6 per shot or double that if both rounds are fired.Rate of Fire: Each shot counts as one action even if both rounds are fired.Effective Range: 300 feet (91 m).Payload: Two roundsCost: 10,000 credits for the shotgun and each E-6 round cost 320 credits.

114. What is the correct damage and payload for the NG-P7? The Rifts main book and Rifts GM Guide have different numbers.

Answer: The ones in the Rifts GM Guide were a mistake and will be fixed on a later printing.